The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 slashed the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21% and more than doubled the federal estate tax exemption rate for married couples, from $11 million to $27 million. An analysis by the Congressional Budget Office and the Joint Committee of Taxation found that beginning in 2027, lower- and middle-class families could see a tax increase that would exceed the rate they paid before 2017.
Sadly, the law is set to expire at the end of the year. It would be just awful if America’s billionaires lost the gift that this law gave them; they’ve increased their collective wealth by trillions since the tax cuts went into effect. Thankfully, Congress is in talks to protect these vulnerable individuals.
The current news cycle is saturated with stories about disillusioned Trump supporters finding out what they actually voted for, as they lose jobs and benefits. Not the top 10%, though. They own 90% of all the stocks on Wall Street. They know exactly what they were voting for.
There’s another notable result of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act: the $20-billion decrease in charitable donations. Part of the reform included changing the standards for a tax write-off for 20% of Americans. That led to fewer dollars being given to charities, many of which help people in need. It is rather telling that the same law that increased wealth by the trillions for the few led to billions being kept from the many.
After the country entered World War I in 1917, to help pay for it President Wilson and Congress introduced Liberty bonds and expanded the federal income tax, which increased the number of people paying to 4 million, up from 500,000. Concerned the tax increase would prevent wealthier Americans from donating, the War Revenue Act of 1917 introduced the charitable donation policy. It wasn’t a loophole that needed closing; it was a door the federal government opened so that Americans were incentivized to still help one another after money got tight.